LEXINGTON, Ky (10/23/13) —Before the nation got to know Olivia Henken, she was singing at karaoke bars in Louisville with her band. After years of being compared to other country music stars, Olivia decided to follow her dreams and take the next big step in being a country music artist.

“The Voice was the perfect opportunity for me,” Olivia said. “The competition is based purely on your talent and your voice instead of your appearance, and I thought it was the perfect fit.”

After making it past the executive rounds, Olivia received an email notification that she made it to the blind auditions. As a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, she intended to get up on stage and give it her all, she said.

“I knew I had to do what I do and hoped that it was enough for one of the judges to turn around. Once Christina’s chair turned, I pretty much blacked out. I don’t remember much after that,” Olivia laughingly said. “It pretty much solidified that I was on the show, and it took the nerves away, and I could have fun and show everyone my stage presence.”

Going into the competition, Olivia said contestants hope and pray that someone turns their chair around. To impress someone that has as much musical talent as the four judges, to impress Aguilera is the highlight of her life to date, she said.

“I call Christina ‘the voice,’ I think she is amazing,” Olivia said. “Going into the competition as a country music singer, I obviously wanted Blake to be my coach, but now after it is all said and done I am glad that everything happened the way that it did. I couldn’t have picked a more perfect coach for myself.”

Still reeling with excitement, Olivia finds it amazing Aguilera found something in her voice she liked. However, Aguilera isn’t the only one. People all over the nation have fallen in love with the Kentucky girl.

“It’s all so surreal. I found out I had a fan page and I was like, 'Wow, really?'” Olivia said. “I have all of these people tweeting me and they get so excited when I follow them back. I’m just like, 'Who am I? Why are you so excited that I’m following you, I’m just Olivia.'”

Full of smiles, Olivia couldn’t stop talking about her ‘voice family.’

“I have met so many great people and even after this competition they will be my best friends,” Olivia said. “We sit out by the campfire with guitars and have 16 completely different harmonies. They are the only people in the world that know what I am going through at this time.”

Taking the stage last night for Battle rounds, Olivia added sass and spunk to the song, “I’m Done.” In a post interview aired on ‘The Voice’, Olivia said she and Stephanie Anne Johnson went into the competition with the attitude of “two girlfriends going to the bar after breaking up with their man.”

“We did it all in friendship and it was great,” Olivia said. “It was so much fun, and I was standing up there with one of my friends. It’s definitely one of the most emotional parts of the show, because you are competing against someone you care about. We went out there to have fun, and hoped that whoever didn’t win would get stolen.”

After an amazing battle, Aguilera picked Olivia for the win.

“Before battle rounds, Christina told me to, ‘Take some time for Olivia.’ She told me that at the end of the day it was OK to turn my brain off for a couple of hours,” said Olivia. “The most important part of this competition is to take the time to emotionally and physically unwind and let the day soak in, and not try to think about it too much.”

The next step for Olivia is preparing for the Knockout Rounds that begin next Monday on NBC.

“What I have learned and what I am taking away from this experience is priceless,” she said. “There is no better place to learn, and I am so grateful to have the opportunity to be here and work with these amazing artists.”

Olivia’s past performances can be found on YouTube. She also has Twitter and Facebook fan pages.

“Right now I’m trying to just enjoy myself and take it day by day, but I can’t thank my friends, family and those who support me enough,” Olivia said, “I wouldn’t be where I am today without you all, and that is an amazing thing. Thank you.”